There are many canister filters you can use in your aquarium. However, it is not always easy to tell which size or type of filter is the to maintain proper aquarium care. Luckily, there you can figure out which canister filters are the best to use in your aquarium tanks.

Item #

Brand

Filter Name

GPH Flow Rate

For Aquariums Up to:

Filter Height

Canister Diameter

Media Capacity

Inlet Hose Size

Outlet Hose Size

Watts

30102124

Cascade

500

115

30 gal.

13.5

7.5″ x 8.5″ x 11.5″

3.5L

5/8″

5/8″

10.5

30101593

Cascade

700

185

65 gal.

14.5

7.5″ x 9.5″ x 12.5″

5L

5/8″

5/8″

25

30101594

Cascade

1000

265

100 gal.

16

8″ x 11″ x 14″

6L

5/8″

5/8″

28.5

30101595

Cascade

1200

315

150 gal.

19

9″ x 11″ x 17″

7.6L

5/8″

5/8″

39.6

30101596

Cascade

1500

350

200 gal.

20.5

9″ x 11″ x 18.5″

10L

5/8″

5/8″

45.5

20620261

Eheim

Pro 3 Series 2071

250

65 gal.

14.1″

9.4″ x 9.6″

3.5L

5/8”

5/8”

12

20620239

Eheim

Pro 3 Series 2073

250

95 gal.

15.7″

9.3″ x 9.6″

5L

5/8”

5/8”

12

20620243

Eheim

Pro 3 Series 2075

290

160 gal.

17.8″

9.3″ x 9.6″

6.5L

5/8”

5/8”

16

20620167

Eheim

Pro 3 Series 2080

450

450 gal.

22 1/3″

13″ x 13″

13L

3/4″

3/4″

30

20621052

Eheim

Pro 3 Series 2180

450

450 gal.

22 1/3″

13″ X 13″

13L

3/4″

3/4″

30

20620214

Eheim

Ehiem 2076

77 – 220

105 gal.

18 3/4″

10.5 x 10.5″

6.6L

5/8″

5/8″

10-35

20620220

Eheim

Eheim 2078

88 – 242

180 gal.

21″

10.5 x 10.5″

8.6L

5/8″

5/8″

10-35

20622139

Eheim

Eheim 2213

116

55 gal.

13 1/4″

7″

3L

12mm-1/2″

12mm-1/2″

8

20622210

Eheim

Eheim 2215

165

75 gal.

14″

7″

4L

12mm-1/2″

12mm-1/2″

15

20622211

Eheim

Eheim 2217

265

135 gal.

15″

7″

6L

16mm-5/8″

12mm-1/2″

20

20622196

Eheim

Eheim 2222

132

40 gal.

11 1/2″

7″ x 7″

2L

12mm-1/2″

12mm-1/2″

8

20622203

Eheim

Eheim 2224

185

65 gal.

13″

7″ x 7″

2L

12mm-1/2″

12mm-1/2″

8

20620206

Eheim

Eheim 2026

250

90 gal.

13 1/2″

8 1/2″ x 8 1/2″

4L

16mm-5/8″

12mm-1/2″

25

20620207

Eheim

Eheim 2028

280

160 gal.

16 1/2″

8 1/2″ x 8 1/2″

6L

16mm-5/8″

12mm-1/2″

25

20622105

Eheim

Eheim 2250

300

265 gal.

16″

12″

12L

25mm-1″

12mm-1/2″

28

20622131

Eheim

Eheim 2260

500

400 gal.

23″

12″

18L

25mm-1″

16mm-5/8″

50

15510201

Hagen

Fluval 105

85

25 gal.

11″

7 1/2 x 6 1/2″

3.2L

12mm-1/2″

12mm-1/2″

7

15510206

Hagen

Fluval 205

110

40 gal.

14″

7 1/2″ x 6 1/2″

4.6L

12mm-1/2″

12mm-1/2″

7

15510211

Hagen

Fluval 305

185

70 gal.

15″

9 1/2″ x 6 1/2″

6.6L

14mm-5/8″

14mm-5/8″

12

15510216

Hagen

Fluval 405

225

100 gal.

17 1/2″

9 1/2″ x 6 1/2″

8.5L

14mm-5/8″

14mm-5/8″

25

15510218

Hagen

Fluval FX5

925

400 gal.

17″

16″

5.9L

1”

1”

48

15510410

Hagen

Fluval G3

185

80 gal.

9″

9″ x 9 1/2″ x 10″

5L

5/8”

5/8”

18

15510412

Hagen

Fluval G6

265

180 gal.

12″

12″ x 9 1/2″ x 10″

8.7L

5/8”

5/8”

27

47490038

Marineland

Magnum 350 Pro

350

100 gal.

14″

7″

16 OZ

5/8″

5/8″

35

47433504

Marineland

Magnum 350 Deluxe

350

100 gal.

14″

6.5″

16 OZ

5/8″

5/8″

35

47490134

Marineland

H.O.T. Magnum

250

75 gal.

13 1/2″

5 1/2″

8 OZ

rigid

rigid

11

47490135

Marineland

H.O.T. Magnum Pro

250

100 gal.

14″

7″

16 OZ

5/8″

5/8″

18

47450490

Marineland

Multi-Stage 160

160

30 gal.

13″

7 3/4″ x 7 3/4″

1.2 Gal

5/8″

5/8″

12

47450500

Marineland

Multi-Stage 220

220

55 gal.

14 3/4″

13 3/4 x 7 3/4″

1.6 Gal

5/8″

5/8″

20

47450510

Marineland

Multi-Stage 360

360

100 gal.

17″

13 3/4 x 7 3/4″

3.4 Gal

5/8″

5/8″

35

47490930

Marineland

Multi-Stage 530

530

150 gal.

22″

22″ x 14″ x 14″

9.3 Gal

7/8″

7/8″

56

92421254

JBJ

Reaction EFU-25

198

100 gal.

15.24″

11.41″ x 11.41″ x 15.24″

4L

5/8″

5/8″

23

92421237

JBJ

Reaction EFU-35

250

150 gal.

17.52″

11.41″ x 11.41″ x 17.52″

6L

5/8″

5/8″

27

92421256

JBJ

Reaction EFU-45

290

175 gal.

19.8″

11.41″ x 11.41″ x 19.8″

8L

5/8″

5/8″

32

17100720

Rena

Filstar XP1

250

45 gal.

11″

9 1/4″ x 8″

4.4L

5/8″

5/8″

18

17100721

Rena

Filstar XP2

300

75 gal.

13″

9 1/4″ x 8″

6.3L

5/8″

5/8″

23

17100722

Rena

Filstar XP3

350

175 gal.

16″

9 1.4″ x 8″

9.1L

5/8″

5/8″

28

17100723

Rena

Filstar xP4

450

265 gal.

19

9 1/4″ X 8″

11.9L

5/8″

5/8″

31

30780340

Red Sea

Ocean Clear Model 340

800 – 1600

150 gal.

13″

11″

3/4″

3/4″

30780375

Red Sea

Ocean Clear Model 375

500 – 1600

1000 gal.

11″

11″

3/4″

3/4″

30780380

Red Sea

Ocean Clear Model 380

500 – 1600

1000 gal.

11″

11″

3/4″

3/4″

30780354

Red Sea

Ocean Clear Model 354

600 – 1200

1200 gal.

14″

15″

3/4″

3/4″

30780325

Red Sea

Ocean Clear Model 325

1200 gal.

55-100

13″

14″

3/4″

3/4″

15510410

Hagen

Fluval G3

185

80 gal.

9″

10″ D x 9 1/2″ W x 9″ H

18

15510412

Hagen

Fluval G6

265

160 gal.

12″

10″ D x 9 1/2″ W x 12″ H

27

Now that you know what kind of canister filter will fit your aquarium, enjoy your well-filtered fish tank!

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comments (25)

Pretty insightful post. Never thought that it was this simple after all. I had spent a good deal of my time looking for someone to explain this subject clearly and you’re the only one that ever did that. Kudos to you! Keep it up

[…] the energy usage is the real deciding point for me at this point. I used this chart to compare: Comparison Chart for Aquarium Canister Filters | PetSolutions Blog I have read that the Eheim all had the same issue of 0-ring failure and difficulty getting […]

GOOD INFO. I GOT A QUICK QUESTION… PLEASE EMAIL ME WHAT U THINK. I AM SETTING UP A 90 GALLON. I SEE A LOT OF PEOPLE USING 2 CANISTERS WITH A LARGE SETUP…. IS THERE A REASON. ALL I CAN THINK OF IS THAT IF ONE CRAPS OUT THE OTHER CAN KEEP YOU AFLOAT TILL YOU FIX 2ND CANISTER. THANKS

I’ll email you, as well, but I wanted to post an answer here in case you check back.

I spoke to our Live Deliveries Manager. You are partially right – a second canister filter is used partially for redundancy. Having a second filter is also a strong recommendation for aquarium set ups that are over 6 feet long, as it will give you more water flow throughout the tank.

Since your aquarium is a 4-foot long set up, you would not need a second filter, unless you wanted the redundancy in case one of your filters dies out.

having problems with my Magnum pump filter not pumping the water, it pumps for awhile and then quits, but the pump is still running. Do i have it hooked up wrong i acts like it is getting air. Could you please help.

I am thinking about upgrading from my 20L tank to a 40L. One of this things I’d like to do is get a canister filter (if it’s cost effective). I don’t know anything about these. right now I change my filter every 2-3 weeks, and each filter costs about: $3. so about $6 to $9 per month on filters… (for a 20gal which I assume will increase in price with a 40gal tank) I noticed earlier you mentioned 4-5 weeks was norm for filter replacement… How much would you say the Cascade 700 would cost in materials to replace each month? and… what do I have to get as far as materials go? one last thing… do you think that filter is appropriate for a 40 gallon tank?

Hi Dave, the Cascade filters are reliable and easy to work with. If you plan to stock the new tank pretty heavily or if it is a marine aquarium, I would go with the model 1000. If you are stocking lightly and do regular monthly water changes, the 700 should be fine. The cascade will have a couple of pads inside which you will gently rinse out when you do filter maintenance each month, and it will have carbon bags inside that you will need to replace every four or five weeks. How much it is going to cost you will be determined by how much carbon you run in your filter. I would think you will use 2 carbon bags each month minimum, a box of two is currently (6/16/11) $5.99 so you will spend close to the same amount you are already spending each month. The filter comes with one carbon bag and the necessary filter pads, so you would need to pick up a couple of boxes of the carbon bags and whatever your biological media of choice is to put in the filter. The bio media is not something you will replace or clean.

Thanks for the reply. I have a bit more of a understanding of the canister filters now, but why would the 65 gallon filter be too small for a 40 gallon tank (not sure I understand the reasoning behind that)? In general, to make sure I got it right… the pads don’t get changed… just cleaned, the carbon gets replaced, and the bio media (not sure what a good one to use is) doesn’t get changed, or cleaned… Also, by stocked heavily you mean lots of fish? I plan to have a good amount of fish (fresh water), I don’t know what’s considered \heavily stocked\. I will have no living plants, just smaler fish (barbs)… maybe 1 fish per 2 or 3 gallons (12-20 total), and maybe 1-2 plecos.

Hi Dave, for a freshwater aquarium you will be fine with the model 700. Manufacturers do not often get it right in my opinion, on recommended tank sizes. One example of that is the filtration on the 265 gallon aquarium I have set up, according to manufacturers specs, I should just need one of the filter I have installed on it but I am running two. If you were going with a marine setup rather than freshwater, I’d say don’t go less than the model 1000, for water flow purposes as well as for giving you more physical space to run different types of media that a marine tank may need that a freshwater aquarium really doesn’t. The model of filter you choose doesn’t just rely solely on the size of the aquarium, but also is determined by the aquarium configuration.

ok… so my plans may have changed a bit… still a fresh water, still a canister filter, but now I’m looking at a 50gal. decoration will just be fake plants, gravel, maybe some logs, and structures, and some fish of course… do you think the 700 would still be sufficient for this setup, or should I get the 1000? I don’t want to have to do water changes every week or anything, so if the 1000 would keep it cleaner longer, I’d prolly go with that one, but if there won’t be much of a difference between the 700 and 1000 I’d rather just keep the 700…

Nice research and comparison in a chart format. I especially like that you identify the inlet diameter. Also nice would be to know the number and size of baskets designed for each model – this would help in planning for media when you haven't seen each model.

I'm working on getting a 180g aquarium and I've researched different canister filters. I have an Eheim 2217 on a 125g Malawi cichlid tank and I like it. I'm torn between Eheim and Rena products for the 180g tank. Any comments?

Rachelle, both brands pretty much do the same thing. There is a price discrepancy between the two. If you are comfortable with the Eheim brand, I would suggest that one. Otherwise, you can try the Rena. We do have a 60 day guarantee, so if you try the Rena and don't like it, you can return it for a full product refund within 60 days!

A great concept – to match and compare the qualities listed. However, a list of this nature should be updated. For example, I did not see Haydor -sp? , or Fluval FX5/6 and a few others. The best deal of all – not indicated – would be the Sun Sun and Aquatop CF-300, 400 and 500. Now they ARE power players without the price!

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